It Will Be Alright
by btamamura
Summary: 1980s series. Takes place before my previous fic 'Nightmare'. A horrible nightmare of Penfold's wakes Danger Mouse. Just what was it that caused him such a fright? No slash, brotherly love and friendship fluff. Contains mentioned non-graphic death in a nightmare, rated to be safe.


**Disclaimer:** _I do not own_ _ **Danger Mouse**_ _or any canon characters. They are the property of Brian Cosgrove and Mark Hall._

 **Notes:** _ **This takes place before**_ _Nightmare_ _ **, as such is set in the 1980s series. There is a little bit of humour in this, but it's really a comfort fic. The reason for this will be explained in the after-notes.**_

 _ **Warnings: Potential OOC, death in a nightmare.**_

 _ **I hope you enjoy this!**_

 _ **(Linebreaks despise me, I'll instead use**_ _DMEP_ _ **.)**_

DMEP

 _Midnight in London, and all residents are fast asleep. Many are having sweet dreams of lives they wished they had. Some are having nightmares. How is the night passing for the residents of the pillar-box in Mayfair? Of course, I do mean the amazing Danger Mouse and average Penfold._

Penfold woke with a loud scream, loud enough that all of Baker Street could hear it. In the houses though, many just dismissed it, recognising it as the screams of fear from the assistant of the world's greatest secret agent.

Danger Mouse didn't dismiss it. He was up in a flash, grabbing his dressing gown and tying the sash around his waist as he hurried to Penfold's bedroom. He opened the door. "Penfold, has something happened? Are you alright, little friend?"

The hamster's screams died down when he heard the gentle voice of his best friend. He shook his head. "I'm alright, Chief. Sorry for waking you."

"A scream like that would be enough to wake the dead, so something is not quite right." He approached the bed and sat on it. "Did you have a horrifying nightmare again?"

His tiny eyes widened as he nodded. He switched on the lamp and reached for his spectacles. "It was really scary, DM..."

"Would you like to tell me what happened?"

"Oh, crumbs...I don't know if I can...it was too scary..."

"But, talking about it just might be what you need to help you." He shifted closer and placed his paw on the hamster's shoulder.

"Okay. We...we were at Hyde Park, just having a nice walk, when suddenly this giant, hairy beast approached."

"A giant, hairy beast, you say?"

"Mm-hm, and it was _huge_!"

"What was it exactly?"

"I didn't want to stick around to find out. So, I ran away screaming."

"That's where your nightmare ends?"

"No, it keeps going. You tried calling for me, but I just kept running away. I didn't know if you were right behind me or not. Then, I fell down a dark, deep hole."

"Is that where your nightmare ended?"

"No, it's not over yet."

 _Good_ _ **grief**_ _! That's two scary events and they weren't what woke him up? Then, what was it?_

"At the bottom of the hole was a deep puddle of water. So deep that I fell into it and saw fish swimming around. As I tried to reach the surface, a big, grey thing approached. I saw its teeth, it was a shark!"

"Was that...?"

"It keeps going, DM, I'll tell you when it ends. The shark took a bite and I wound up in its mouth, but apparently it didn't like the taste of hamster, so it spat me out and I flew out of the deep puddle and out of the hole. I soon found myself back on the streets. I started to wonder if you were okay or if the big, hairy beast got you, so summoning up what courage I had, I hurried back to the park."

"That was very brave of you, even if it was a dream."

"Thanks, Chief. So, I saw that the big, hairy beast was, in fact, just a large, slobbery dog. It was a friendly sort of chap. You were playing with it."

"Sounds like everything started getting better."

"It did, until I heard a voice."

"A voice?"

"One I knew _all_ too well."

"Greenback? Nero? Stiletto? Crumhorn? Quark? Count Duckula?"

"It was Count Duckula, and he was holding a banjo and getting ready to sing _Camptown Races_."

He forced himself not to ask if that was where the dream ended.

"Before he opened his bill, another voice could be heard. It was..."

He noted Penfold was suddenly turning pale enough it affected his fur. "Who was it?"

"It was...it was...Aunty Doreen! She came along and then she started telling Duckula off for being ready for Halloween in July, then started lecturing you about playing with slobbering dogs and to get into some proper clothing instead of your jumpsuit, and then she started on me about my suit! But, that wasn't the worst of it...when Duckula got so fed-up with Aunty, he tried hypnotising her...instead, he somehow cloned her! Soon, all of London was over-run by clones of Aunty Doreen!" He screamed again.

"Not in my ear, please." Something told him that scream was forced.

"Then, I woke up."

"I see. Well, that certainly was one horrifying dream you had there. I have to admit I'd be pretty scared if I had a similar dream." While the closing of the dream may have sounded a bit silly, Danger Mouse noted Penfold was still trembling.

"Actually, I made that part up..." he whispered under his breath.

"I'm surprised it was not the hairy beast, the dark hole, the deep puddle or the shark that had caused you such distress, but instead, hundreds of clones of your aunt." He straightened. "One second, did you just say you made up the part about your aunt?"

"Mm-hm. The clones, anyway."

"Why?"

"Because what _really_ happened was _too_ scary."

"Penfold, tell me what it really was. What happened when Count Duckula arrived?"

"After Aunty Doreen lectured all of us and he hypnotised her, he...he..."

"No more telling porkies this time either."

"Okay, DM. He...he..."

 _Maybe having him tell me what it really was isn't such a good idea. Just thinking about it is making him quiver far more than when we find ourselves face-to-face with Greenback._ "You don't have to say it, Penfold. Clearly, it's too distressing."

"He killed you..."

"He what?"

"DM, he _killed_ you! He said some nonsense about how you always get in his way when he wants to gain stardom, so when he brought out his banjo and started singing, one string he strummed brought out a pistol! I know your jumpsuit is bulletproof, but that doesn't apply in nightmares, does it? Then, he bowed to his imaginary audience before you breathed your last, and then...that's really when I woke up."

"Oh, Penfold..." He was amazed the hamster hadn't actually started crying. He knew _he_ would if he ever found himself having nightmares involving _Penfold_ 's death.

"It was horrible, DM. Worst of all, I couldn't do anything because...when he started singing, I ran away again, but I turned back when I heard the gunshot. I had hurried to your side, pleading with you to be alright, but you knew you weren't. You...cracked a few jokes about Duckula's performance."

He pulled the still shaky hamster into an embrace. "You need to remember that really was just a nightmare. Duckula will go to many lengths to acquire fame, but I don't think he would go as far as murder. My jumpsuit really is bulletproof, I ensured it myself when I created this fabric."

"I...I know, but..."

"It will be alright, Penfold."

"Did you just do a title drop?"

" _Shush_ , don't go off-script."

"Sorry."

"Now, where were we?"

"You telling me it will be alright."

"Thank you." He patted the hamster's back. "I know nightmares can be _especially_ frightful at times, but what happened is something that never shall. It is only a rather dark figment of your mind, alright?"

"Mm-hm. But, I'm worried I'll have it again. Could...could you please stay with me tonight?"

At first he was going to say _no, I'm not your parent and you're not a child_ , but feeling the hamster's tremors changed his mind. "We'll do this only for tonight, alright?"

"Right, DM."

He removed his dressing gown and laid it on the end of the bed. He pulled back the covers and slipped into bed.

Penfold had removed his spectacles. "Thank you, DM." He yawned and switched off his lamp. "Good night."

"Good night, Penfold." He closed his eye and returned to slumber.

Penfold took a little longer to go to sleep, but knowing Danger Mouse was there with him, he knew he was safe from everything; even nightmares. He closed his eyes and let out a sigh of relief.

Needless to say, there were no more nightmares that night.

DMEP

 _The rest of the night is uneventful, meaning our heroes will get plenty of sleep. They'll surely be needing it for the next adventure of..._ _ **Danger Mouse**_ _!_

DMEP

 **After-notes:** _ **Thanks for reading this short story! First off, the part about DM's jumpsuit being bulletproof and made of a fabric he created all comes from**_ _The Danger Mouse Files_ _ **. Heh, I do tend to use a lot of info from that for the stories that take place in the classic series.**_

 _ **Now, why did I write this? The truth is, I'm trying to comfort/distract myself. I'm going to undergo a gastroscopy in a hospital an hour's drive away from home tomorrow and am pretty scared of what I'll be going through. Too many concerns are filling my mind; so many I won't list them here. Another reason I wrote this is because, with my latest projects, these two need a breather. Even the lighter chapters in**_ _I Never Realised_ _ **have their heavy moments. Granted, this has a heavy nightmare, but I put in a bit of humour here and there to try to lighten things up.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading! You don't have to review, but please don't flame? Constructive criticism is all welcomed though.**_


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